Earth Share of Washington - News

Stories of a Wildlife Rescue - "The Final Step"

by Naturalist Kevin Mack from Earth Share of Washington member PAWS Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, published in the July 28, 2004 edition of Wild Again

At 9 am on Tuesday June 22nd I was chasing a fuzzy brown blur around a cage on the hill behind the PAWS Wildlife Center. I was wearing gloves at the time, and I was wielding a net with which I am ordinarily very skilled. I say "ordinarily" because on this day I was dealing with an animal that is particularly adept at avoiding capture. I had already come...Read the full story

June 30, 2004 | Comments Off

Northern spotted owl faces nonlogging threats

VANCOUVER, Wash. -- The northern spotted owl face a host of threats that have nothing to do with logging, but protecting the bird's forest land base appears to be as important as ever, according to draft recommendations of a federally funded scientific review released yesterday.

Threats include surging populations of the rival barred owl in prime spotted-owl territory, the potential spread of West Nile virus to the spotted owl and the prospect of intense wildfires in overgrown eastern Cascade forests.

Scientists also are concerned that a mysterious plant disease, sudden oak ...Read the full story

June 29, 2004 | Comments Off

Toxic Emissions Rising, EPA Says

Industry released 5 percent more toxic chemicals into the environment in 2002 than the year before, the Environmental Protection Agency reported yesterday.

The latest statistics, compiled in the agency's annual Toxic Release Inventory, represent a setback: In 2001, according to the inventory, toxic emissions had declined by about 16 percent. Environmental groups, moreover, charged yesterday that polluters were releasing four to five times more toxic material than they reported.

Kim Nelson, who directs the EPA's Environmental Information Office, said much of last year's incre...Read the full story

June 28, 2004 | Comments Off

Updates restored

We apologize for the delay updating our website. About two weeks ago, the database that houses all of the dynamic content for the website crashed. So while the site looked fine to any visitors during that time, we were unable to update northwest environmental news, volunteer opportunities, and upcoming events.

With our fingers crossed, our system is reinstalled and back up and running. Please bear with us while we repopulate the website with fresh information.

Thank you,
The Earth Share of Washington Staff

June 27, 2004 | Comments Off

Second largest U.S. Bank Set to Reduce Global Warming Pollution

Bank of America Maps New Climate Change, Forest Policies

SAN FRANCISCO -- Bank of America and Rainforest Action Network have collaborated to introduce environmental ethics to the bank's corporate bottom line, and on Monday they jointly announced the fruit of that collaboration.

The second largest U.S. bank has decided to take new steps in the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, protection of intact forest ecosystems and transparent public reporting to all stakeholders.

In addition to policy enhancements, Bank of America will create an environmenta...Read the full story

June 18, 2004 | Comments Off

Winning the war on spartina

Volunteers get a grip on nasty marsh grass

ANACORTES - Gingerly squatting next to a small, orange flag stuck in the soupy mud flat behind Northern Lights Casino, People for Puget Sound biologist Keeley O'Connell manhandles a shoot of grass that she has marked for death.

"One of the ways you can tell that it's spartina is they break off the stem at a perfect 45-degree angle," says O'Connell, bending the shoot's rigid leaf.

The grass O'Connell holds is spartina, an invasive weed that would ...Read the full story

June 17, 2004 | Comments Off

Stories of a Wildlife Rescue - "Fly Like A... "

by Naturalist Kevin Mack from Earth Share of Washington member PAWS Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, published in the June 16, 2004 edition of Wild Again

On June 2nd, I was sitting in the back yard of a piece of private property in Lynnwood staring at a cardboard pet carrier. I had tilted the carrier onto its side to make it easier for the animal contained within to exit. About 60 seconds had passed since I had tilted the carrier, but there were still no signs of life from the box. After another minute h...Read the full story

June 16, 2004 | Comments Off

Day in the Park Festivities

Please excuse our editor and staff while we take a break from providing you with the latest Northwest environmental news to plan for our annual Day in the Park.

Frequent news updates will return immediately following the event on Wednesday, June 16.

June 05, 2004 | Comments Off

Speaker Chopp praises Washington Environmental Council's work in the Legislature

Washington Environmental Council (WEC) Outreach Director Tom Geiger recently interviewed Speaker of the House of Representatives Frank Chopp. Speaker Chopp was first elected to the House in 1994 and became the Speaker in 1998. He is a Democrat who represents the 43rd district in Seattle.

Tom Geiger (TG): You have been in the legislature for about a decade. What has it been like working with the environmental community in the legislature?

Speaker Chopp (FC): Well, every year it has been getting better with regard to working together ...Read the full story

June 03, 2004 | Comments Off

Report Names Washington's Top 10 Endangered Hiking Trails

SEATTLE-- Washington Trails Association, the state's leading hiking trails advocacy group, today released its annual report of the Top 10 endangered hiking trails. And as expected, damage from last October's record-setting flood and several seasons of intense wildfires have had a devastating impact of many of the state's most popular trails. The report finds that the lack of emergency funding available for repairs from weather-related storm damage could keep some of the state's most popular routes closed for years.

According to the report, the ten most endangered hiking trails in Wa...Read the full story

June 02, 2004 | Comments Off